High school beat notes

GIRLS LACROSSE

Bulls persevering

Noticeably absent from Smithtown East's 16-15 Division I win at North Babylon on Tuesday afternoon was Bulls midfielder Nicole Daniggelis, who is out for the season with a torn ACL in her left knee.

Well, she was absent from the field at least.

Daniggelis was on the sideline, saddled with crutches and a full leg brace on her left leg, cheering on her team and keeping the stat sheet. The tall sophomore was hurt in a 14-13 overtime loss to Ward Melville on April 20, a game in which she scored three goals.

In the eight games she played this season, Daniggelis, one of the "rising stars" among Newsday's preseason girls lacrosse players to watch, racked up 24 goals and 14 assists.

Though Smithtown East improved to 3-1 without Daniggelis Saturday, Bulls coach Catherine Guerriere said the team has had to alter its offense without her in the lineup.

"Nicole was a big part of our offense and it's been a lot of different players filling the role of her job," the coach said. "We've been spreading our talent and scoring more."

While Shannon O'Connor and Christine O'Reilly continue to pace the Bulls in scoring, they've needed players such as Marisa Grennan, who scored the game-winner Saturday, to step up in Daniggelis' place.

"Losing Nicole was really hard," O'Reilly said. "We're trying to come together and edge ourselves into the playoffs."

CREW

Big crowd at Rowing

Last Sunday's Long Island Junior Rowing Championships Regatta, hosted by the Sagamore Rowing Association at Centre Island Beach, surpassed all expectations, drawing more than 1,000 competitors and 34 organizations from as far away as New England to the picturesque North Shore beach.

"It was the largest regatta in the history of Long Island," Sagamore Rowing Association secretary-treasurer Rich McLoughlin said. "It was much larger than anything we expected."

The Sagamore Rowing Association and the Town of Oyster Bay worked hand in hand arranging extra parking and making sure the park was ready for such an influx of people. It was a huge success, according to McLoughlin.

The Sagamore Rowing Association has held the event, along with the smaller Frostbite Regatta in the fall, for years but had never had half the competitors as this year's events. McLoughlin attributed the success to word spreading over the Internet, the knowledge that the Sagamore Rowing Association was well-organized and the cooperation of the town.

McLoughlin said he expects the large turnouts to continue.

"I don't think it will be the last," he said. "The sport is growing."

TENNIS

Roslyn's great expectations

Could this be the year for Roslyn? Coach Kerri Jannotte calls the Bulldogs' doubles the "bread and butter" of a 9-0 team that recently clinched the Conference IB title. Matt Kline and Tino Papatasiliou anchor a deep doubles lineup capable of sweeping the competition. But Roslyn also features a talented pair of seniors at first and second singles in Austin Blau and Alex Werman.

Roslyn will look to complete an undefeated season tomorrow when they take on Hewlett. With Conference IA champ Cold Spring Harbor (11-0) also undefeated, the two appear destined for a repeat of last year's county final.